Estimate of receipts and disbursements, July 1 to Dec. 31, 1959 Federal aid, right-of-way, Des Moines Freeway. 4,917, 710 3,845, 070 3, 134, 300 2, 545, 900 2, 174, 600 1,059, 400 734, 150 399, 600 96,000 100,000 95,000 176,000 206, 000 115,000 10,000 52, 000 18,000 27,000 16,000 72,000 70,000 68,000 64,000 47,000 38,000 15,000 267,000 74,000 799,000 458,000 Federal aid, earned engineering and inspection service, interstate. 819,000 450,000 419,900 678, 800 686, 900 537,000 327,800 256, 300 650,000 650,000 475,000 475,000 425,000 425,000 3, 100, 000 160,000 160,000 100,000 84,000 73,000 73,000 30,800 30, 800 30,800 30, 800 30, 800 30, 800 650,000 60,000 60,000 31, 900 31,800 63,800 66,800 66,800 66,800 297,900 20,000 20,000 20,000 20,000 20,000 20,000 120,000 NOTE.-Interstate carryover, $3,081,900; primary carryover, $5,927,100. Representative WILBUR D. MILLS, Chairman, House Ways and Means Committee, FRANKFORT, KY., July 24, 1959. Am advised that House Ways and Means Committee has begun hearings on proposed increase in Federal gasoline tax. I am opposed to this increase and believe the Federal Government should cease the present diversion and should earmark motor vehicle excises and all other highway-user taxes for the interstate highway program. If Federal Government continues to raise gasoline taxes, the States will be in an increasingly difficult position. Please include this telegram in the record of this hearing on this proposed increase. ALBERT B. CHANDLER, Governor, Commonwealth of Kentucky. Hon. WILBUR MILLS, JEFFERSON CITY, Mo., July 28, 1959. Chairman, Ways and Means Committee, It is vital to the welfare and progress of this section of the country that the Federal-aid highway program be continued at an undiminished rate. The spending of appropriations for that purpose and the necessity for improved highway transportation is vital to the economy of this city and the State of Missouri. C. FOREST WHALEY, Mayor of Jefferson City. JEFFERSON CITY, Mo., July 28, 1959. Hon. WILBUR MILLS, Chairman, Ways and Means Committee, This governing body of the city of Jefferson City is seriously alarmed at the possibility of reduced appropriations for Federal aid to the States for highway construction. For the best interest of our city and our trade territory it is unquestionably necessary that appropriations be continued at the planned rate. This request is made as the unanimous opinion of the members of the city council of Jefferson City. HENRY ELLIS, Clerk, City Council of Jefferson City, Mo. STATE OF MONTANA, Hon. WILBUR MILLS, Chairman, House Ways and Means Committee, DEAR CHAIRMAN MILLS: The following statement is submitted with the request that it be read into the record of the hearings of the House Ways and Means Committee on July 22. We join together in the interests of the best possible highway program for the State of Montana and the United States of America, in urging that your Committee on Ways and Means of the U.S. House of Representatives do its utmost in arriving at a reasonable solution to the present interstate highway financing problem. We are opposed to any increase in the Federal gasoline tax. Montana depends on the gasoline tax at the State level for the major share of its highway matching funds. Therefore, any increase in the Federal gasoline tax would merely take money out of the State's pocket and put it in Uncle Sam's pocket, and we in Montana would still be expected to match the increased amount in the Federal pocket. Montana is already short of State matching funds, due to no action by the 1959 State legislature to continue the added 1-cent gas tax, despite a clear warning from both the State highway commission and the Governor in his state of the State message to the legislature, that additional State revenue for the highway department was necessary to carry on the accelerated highway program. From Montana's standpoint, a reevaluation of the excise and highway use taxes at the Federal level would be far more preferable. We would prefer that all of these go into the highway trust fund. Montana and the Nation deserve a first-rate Interstate Highway System. Therefore, we sincerely and wholeheartedly urge your committee to put forth its very best effort toward finding a solution that will result in the best possible highway system for Montana and the United States. Very truly yours, J. HUGO ARONSON, Governor. State Highway Engineer. LINCOLN, NEBR., July 29, 1959. Hon. WILBUR D. MILLS, House Ways and Means Committee, House Office Building, Washington, D.C.: Nebraska, as the bridge State of the Nation's traffic and with its main highway arteries leading to the world's largest livestock market at Omaha, is gravely concerned at the possible interruption or suggested curtailment of the interstate highway development program. Our accelerated construction program has brought enthusiastic endorsement from business and labor interests. Homeowners and property taxpayers I respectfully urge you, and the other members of your committee to strive diligently for development of an acceptable financing program which will nsure continuation of interstate highway construction at present degree of momentum. Any reduction of activity will impede the Nation's commerce and defer completion of a highway program long considered vital to our national and civilian defense. Taxpayers and citizens of the United States will experience difficulty in reconciling a deferment of our own interstate highway program with the use of American dollars abroad for road construction in foreign lands. Respectfully, RALPH G. BROOKS, CARSON CITY, NEV., July 31, 1959. Congressman WILBUR D. MILLS, House Ways and Means Committee, I'm opposed any legislation which would increase the Federal tax on gasoline as long as there is a diversion of such funds from other than highway channels. Please include this in the Federal record. GRANT SAWYER, Governor. SANTA FE, N. MEX., July 24, 1959. WILBUR D. MILLS, Chairman, House Ways and Means Committee, Strongly oppose increase in Federal gasoline tax and ask that this telegram be included in the record. JOHN BURROUGHS, Governor. DAYTON, OHIO, July 23, 1959. WILBUR D. MILLS, Chairman, House Ways and Means Committee, Urge favorable action on program to provide necessary financing for highway program. Ohio will be especially hard hit if no program is agreed upon in this session of Congress. R. WILLIAM PATTERSON, Mayor, City of Dayton. COLUMBIA, S.C., July 24, 1959. Representative WILBUR D. MILLS, Chairman, Ways and Means Committee, Re This is to express opposition to any increase in Federal gasoline tax. spectfully request this message of opposition be included in committee hearing records. ERNEST F. HOLLINGS, Governor of South Carolina. SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH, July 27, 1959. Congressman WILBUR D. MILLS, Chairman, House Ways and Means Committee, Utah is opposed to further increase in Federal gasoline tax. This source of revenue must be reserved to help State maintain its Federal-State highway network. GEORGE D. CLYDE, Governor of Utah. OLYMPIA, WASH., July 21, 1959. WILBUR D. MILLS, Chairman, Ways and Means Committee, Because of the uncertainty of Federal matching money for State highway projects as it relates to the condition of the highway trust fund our State today was forced to suspend all bid calls for highway projects. The situation is very serious and some solution must be found to provide Federal matching money to restore the solvency of the highway trust fund for our highway program. We respectfully urge you to use your good offices to seek a solution to this very serious situation. E. J. KETCHAM, Chairman, State Highway Commission. SEATTLE, WASH., July 31, 1959. Representative W. D. MILLS, Chairman, House Ways and Means Committee, Lack of Federal funds for interstate highway program will halt freeway now well started through Seattle. Right-of-way already condemned and houses removed through large residential areas. Long stretches of desolate areas will be eyesore in city. Hon. WILBUR D. MILLS, Chairman, Ways and Means Committee, GORDON S. CLINTON, Mayor. CHEYENNE, Wyo., July 23, 1959. I respectfully request that this telegram expressing my opposition to any increase in the Federal gasoline tax be included in the records of the hearings on a proposed increase. It is my opinion any further increases in this tax should be available to the States for any possible present or future needs. J. J. (JOE) HICKEY, NEW YORK STATE BRIDGE AUTHORITY, Mr. R. IRWIN, Chief Counsel, House Ways and Means Committee, DEAR MR. IRWIN: We in the bridge authority have been following closely the recent hearings on financing the Federal highway program. We hope to con 44357-59-28 struct a new bridge between Newburgh and Beacon, N.Y., utilizing some $24 million of Federal interstate highway money and $11 million of this is in the fiscal 1961 apportionment now in jeopardy. We were unaware of the hearings held last week until it was too late to submit a testimony, but I thought it might still be in order to forward you some thoughts the chairman of the authority had on one technique for reconstituting at least a major part of the 1961 apportionment. The enclosed press release outlines the chairman's ideas of exempting the special outlays required by suspension of the Byrd amendment for fiscal 1959 and fiscal 1960 from the trust fund. Thus, these funds would be permanently financed from the general revenue since they were mainly antirecession measures and not directly attributable to the highway program solely, but were rather viewed as a prop to the economy in general. One might include the entire D program in this category. Yours truly, W. F. WARD, Jr., Secretary to the Board. MR. STILLMAN SUGGESTS HIGHWAY PROGRAM FINANCING ALTERNATIVE POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y., July 10, 1959.-At 3:30 p.m. yesterday the New York State Bridge Authority opened 1 mile of access road between Route 9W and Route 32 at the west approach to the Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge. This road completed at a cost of $1.3 million is a direct link from the vicinity of the IBM plant to the bridge-toll plaza. Among the main speakers were Mr. Richard Whalen, general manager of IBM, Kingston, who noted that this road was "further evidence of foresight and planning," and "is another indication that the Mid-Hudson Valley will continue its economic development in the future." Mr. John S. Stillman, chairman of the New York State Bridge Authority, in the main address noted that IBM recognized the great value of the KingstonRhinecliff Bridge when they located in the Kingston area but he cautioned that the community relations and attitude were certainly as important as any transportation facility. Mr. Stillman pointed out that the authority's next major project is the completion of the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge and in noting the current impasse in Federal aid he called attention to an apparent lack of statesmanship in Washington. Mr. Stillman suggested an alternative to solve the impasse revolving around the pay-as-you-go feature of the Federal highway program. He suggested that the program could be returned to a pay-as-you-go basis by dropping out of trust fund calculations the low receipts of 1958 and the special antirecession trust fund outlays authorized for fiscal 1959 and 1960. This would result in the program being returned to an approximately $2 billion a year level with the need for only a very small gas tax increase, if any. Mr. Stillman said, "Since these outlays are nonrecurring in nature and not directly attributable to the highway program alone, should it not be appropriate that these antirecession outlays be permanently financed from general revenue instead of forcing the trust fund into the position of being a main support of the economy? To allow the trust fund to be whipsawed eliminates much of the value of this separate funding concept which suggests the inherent stability, so necessary to insure business confidence in the program." Hon. WILBUR D. MILLS, Chairman, Committee on Ways and Means, AIR TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION, DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: In approving the tax legislation which became the Highway Revenue Act of 1956, the Ways and Means Committee made it plain that it supported the concept that those who use the highways should pay for them and, conversely, that the tax increases imposed to finance the highway program should not apply to nonhighway users. With regard to the 1-cent increase in the Federal gasoline tax provided for in that act, the committee stated: "The application of the additional motor-fuel taxes has been restricted to fuel used in highway vehicles (motor vehicles for the special motor-fuel tax) |